Back From the Mountains

I'm finally back on the blogging train after a nice long trip to eastern Montana where my parents and I met up to visit my sister at the summer stock theater where she is working.  It was a really great trip, and I enjoyed spending some time in a part of the country that I had never really considered visiting.  Now I can't wait to go back and spend more time hiking in the stunning Glacier National Park.

It was really fun watching my sister perform and getting to appreciate how much she has grown as an actress and singer over the past couple of years.  She made an amazing Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz and Irene Malloy in Hello, Dolly!  The theater itself was beautiful and both of the shows were highly entertaining, though the best part of the trip was just squeezing in as much family time as we could with Brittany's insanely busy schedule.

The other highlight of the trip was the aforementioned Glacier National Park.  I'd really never heard of this park until moving out to this part of of the country, and I can now say with full authority that it is a true hidden gem of the United States.  The park has an amazing array of vistas, from sparkling lakes to craggy mountains, roaring waterfalls to bubbling brooks.  At one moment you feel like your in a near desert environment and the next you're surrounded by lush ferns and towering evergreens.  There are hikes for every level of fitness, and we had a fantastic time exploring without the mad crush of people that we've experienced at other parks.  There were just enough other tourists there to keep you from feeling completely alone, but you could also sit quietly at the edge of a lake and not see another person go by for ages.

We did have one highly dramatic moment as my dad nearly pitched headfirst into Virginia Falls due to a freak bifocal incident.  Sadly his brand new $3 Lewis and Clark baseball cap and my camera weren't so lucky as to avoid a watery grave, but fortunately aside from some extreme bruising and a rather frightening looking cut under the eye, my dad was okay and looked almost as good as new just a few days later.  And I've been wanting a new camera for a while anyway, so thanks for giving me an excuse to get one daddy!  We spent lots of time just driving along desolate highways and back roads and exploring tiny Montana towns, and all in all it was a wonderful and incredibly relaxing vacation.

After a painfully long day of flying which included five takeoffs and landings and two layovers, I got home late Tuesday night to an empty house since Colby was unexpectedly sent off on a long work trip on Sunday and the pups were dropped off at the vet for boarding.  Last night I went with a crew to see Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, and oh my gracious, I laughed, I cried (buckets)!  Of course, the movies never hold a candle to the books, but I think they did a pretty great job capturing the tone of the books and did a decent job of hitting all the highlights.

So, I have the next couple of weeks off from anything pressing aside from school, then we'll be entertaining my in-laws for about a week and the day after they leave jetting off for ten amazing days in Hawaii.  I feel so blessed to be able to spend this summer in such a relaxing way, surrounded by friends and family, traveling and truly getting to enjoy life every day.  Oh summer, please don't ever end!

Comments

[Kate]

Friends always used to laugh when I went on vacation to Idaho or Montana. Then a couple of them went on a recruiting trip for work -- now, they're just jealous. I think that's quite possibly my favorite part of the country.

[katelin]

oh love the pictures! and glad you had such a great trip, i've only been to montana briefly and it was lovely.

ps. as i wrote this comment "for good" came on. heart wicked, just heart it. :)

[Jessica]

That sounds like a great trip! I'm so glad you had fun!!!

[Larissa]

What a cool trip. Montana looks gorgeous!

I'm wishing for an endless summer too.

[Steph.]

Love that picture of you looking out on the waterfall. Sounds like a neat trip--but a big scare with your Dad. My goodness!

I look forward to reading back on your posts and catching up on what you're up to the past few months!

[Kate P]

What a thrilling trip you had! Welcome back. :)

[Becky]

I'm jealous of your summer vacation (both of them!). Glad to hear your dad's okay -- I'm sure that was scary to watch. Btw, do you still want some things to do on Oahu or Kauai (Ted knows Kauai pretty well)?